As the dangers of mold, particularly inside and around a home, have become more widely known, the demand for effective mold removal and prevention has risen. Bleach and other anti-mold chemicals, such as vinegar or alcohol are commonly used to kill mold. As used herein, Bleach refers to an aqueous solution comprising sodium hypochlorite. Other products and methods may include use of toxic compounds, such as caustic soda, or safer oxidizing agents. The current mold-removal products and techniques have shortcomings that the present invention and method seek to address.
Bleach is an effective and common mold remedy. Due to its toxicity, safety precautions must be taken by the user and property owner. However, with proper ventilation, and drying times, bleach can be effective and relatively harmless. The efficacy of bleach on porous surfaces (such as concrete and wood) is limited, and generally requires the use of a surfactant, which acts to assist in penetrating the porous surface. Bleach, even with the aid of a surfactant, does not penetrate porous surfaces well, and requires substantial “sitting time” and/or multiple applications to effectively kill the targeted mold. Long sitting times and multiple applications are not ideal, and require long ventilation periods, and, even when effective, take substantial time and effort, raising the cost and inconvenience to the property owner. Another advantage of bleach is that upon drying, the water evaporates, and the chlorine residue left behind continues to act to prevent further mold growth in the future, though the effective time is limited, since chlorine breaks down fairly rapidly over time.
Natural solutions such as vinegar and alcohol solutions are safer and easier to use than bleach, however they are often less effective and have their own limitations. Though vinegar can penetrate porous surfaces more effectively than bleach without use of a surfactant, vinegar is not as strong as bleach, and may only kill 80-90% of the mold, requiring numerous applications and time. Further, the acidic nature of vinegar may degrade some mineral surfaces, such as marble and granite, limiting its uses. Alcohol is a surface cleaner, but does not penetrate well into porous surfaces. Additionally, alcohol rapidly evaporates and does not leave behind any anti-mold residue to prevent future mold growth.
Alcohol and bleach mixtures are known for improved biocidal behavior over bleach alone, including a significant reduction in the sitting time needed to achieve the same biocidal effectiveness as bleach alone. However, alcohol-bleach mixtures have not been employed in mold removal applications. A study on the relative effectiveness of buffered methanolic bleach solutions in biomedical processes showed significant improvement in the elimination of bacterial spores. See Death, J. and Coates, D. Journal of Clinical Pathology, 1979, 31, 148-152 (http://jcp.bmj.com/content/31/2/148).
Some metals, such as silver, zinc and copper, are also known anti-microbial/fungal agents. Ionic and/or colloidal metals can be suspended in solution, and used in a variety of anti-microbial/fungal applications. However, applicant is not aware of any colloidal or ionic metal-based mold removal and prevention products on the market today.
Additionally, after an area is treated, and sealed it is helpful to leave markings so that a property-owner and/or mold-removal professional can clearly see which areas have been treated and sealed. It is simple to leave visible markers in out of the way areas, such as treatments in basements, the framing and joints within a wall, closets and attics. However, for treatments of visible spaces/surfaces, such as interior walls, exterior shingles, and decks, a visible marking is not desirable. Accordingly, applicant has incorporated the use of a fluorescing compound in its mold sealing formula that is invisible in normal light, but that can be detected by a UV “black” light.